THE pressure is on in the Gisborne District Cricket Association, and teams are responding at the right time of the year.
McIntyre Cup Firsts
Broadford’s status in McIntyre Cup, and its game against Gisborne, is on the line next Saturday, with Gisborne requiring a further 112 runs with seven wickets in hand after a dramatic day’s play at Gardiner Reserve.
Batting first, it was Joshua Nolan’s fighting 61 which allowed Broadford to put in a solid effort against a strong Gisborne bowling lineup, recovering from being 6/96 to put up a score.
Braden Hickey also fought hard to make 27 as Broadford was bowled out for 153.
Getting seven overs at the Gisborne batting lineup, Broadford may have conceded six runs an over, but Bryce Fleming took two crucial wickets, while Riley Nolan also took a wicket with the second last over of the day to leave Gisborne 3/42.
Should Gisborne win, Wallan are in the position of potentially staying up if it can chase down Rupertswood’s 251 at Greenhill Reserve.
The Magpies looked in a good spot when they had Rupertswood 5/71, with Andrew Barber bowling an inspired spell to take two early wickets.
However, Matthew Twentyman played a spellbinding innings to score 157 to give Rupertswood a platform to defend.
Barber’s 2/24 off 12 overs was noteworthy, while Steven Bell took 2/43 off 18.1 overs and Scott O’Donnell took 2/49 off 14.
Zac Bell was unbeaten on four and Matthew Clayton two as Wallan was 0/8 at stumps.
Strong middle order performances helped Romsey score 262 against Macedon at Romsey Park.
Benjamin Way’s 80 and Corey Day’s 50 were the cornerstones of Romsey’s batting, while Matthew Milne added 41.
Macedon was 0/19 at stumps.
Johnstone Shield Firsts
Dale Tassone was the star of the show as Kilmore made 223 against Diggers Rest Bulla Village at the Kilmore Cricket Ground.
Tassone played a sensational innings, scoring 102 off 223 balls in a marathon effort as he fell just short of carrying the bat throughout the Blues’ innings.
Rhys Quinert provided solid support with 29, while Ben Dawson added 30 later on.
Lancefield’s game against Eynesbury is in the balance after a dramatic day’s play at Lancefield Park.
The Tigers looked to be in a fantastic position for much of the afternoon, particularly after leaving Eynesbury 5/35 and 8/75 at a point.
However, some tail wagging allowed Eynesbury to make 116.
Harrison Lehner took 3/11 off 6.1 overs, while Andrew Richardt took 3/30 off 18.
The Tigers could not sustain Eynesbury’s pressure late in the day and lost three wickets, sitting 3/38.
Harvey Lehner will start on three, while Trent McNamara is yet to get off the mark.
Eastern Hill took the biggest score of the day, with the likely minor premiers scoring 7/312 at Kings Park against East Sunbury.
The depth of the Eagles’ batting lineup was telling, with Dean Fulco (63), Benjamin Bryant (59) and Ollie Bryant (50) all scoring half-centuries, while Nathan Fowler (46) and Billy Cox (41) added to the Thunder’s misery.
Women’s
Wallan took a comfortable seven-wicket win at Macedon to remain second in A grade.
Kia Montgomery dominated with the ball, taking 4/11 to spin a web around the Cats’ batting order, leaving them stranded on 8/69, while Emily Telford chipped in with 2/6.
Megan Farrell gave the Magpies a great base to work with by scoring 38 as the Magpies chased down the target in just 8.1 overs, finishing on 3/73.
Lancefield Black was outclassed by Gisborne at home, losing by 82 runs.
The Tigers had no answer to the Gisborne top order as it scored 3/172 off its 20 overs.
Gisborne’s bowlers then had too much firepower for the Tigers, with Hayley Fisher top scoring with 18, as the Tigers made 6/90 off its 20 overs.
In B grade, Broadford’s recent good form came to an end, with Melton Centrals defeating it by nine wickets.
Batting first, Brooke Jeffery was solid for Broadford in scoring 44 as it made 3/93 off its 20 overs.
Despite Broadford’s best efforts, Melton Centrals was too good, scoring 1/94 off 13.1 overs.
Lancefield Yellow took a comfortable eight wicket win at East Sunbury to remain on top.
Molly Consiglio was the best of the Tigers’ even spread of bowlers, taking 2/21 as the Thunder was restricted to 2/21.
Emily Consiglio then guided the Tigers to the target, scoring an unbeaten 50, while Megan Richardt scored 22 as they scored 2/119 off 15.2 overs.
Lower Grades
In McIntyre Cup seconds, Broadford will need to defend 169 against Gisborne next week at Harley Hammond Reserve.
Mitchell Collier top-scored with 61 to give Broadford a shot at winning as it finished 8/168 after 75 overs.
Bradley Regan’s 73 helped Wallan to a good total, scoring 8/212 against Rupertswood at Salesian College.
Ben Funnell provided valuable lower-order runs, scoring 49.
Meantime, three wickets to Jake East allowed Romsey to bowl Macedon out for 152 at Tony Clarke Reserve.
East’s 3/16 off 12 overs was ably supported by Zade Mezzatesta, who took 2/27 off 11 overs.
In Johnstone Shield Seconds, Eastern Hill needs only 58 more runs to take first innings points with nine wickets in hand against East Sunbury.
An even bowling performance saw Fraser Lewis take 3/27, while Ben Brown (2/5) and Peter Speechley (2/12) also contributed heavily to bowl East Sunbury out for 80.
Tayte Hoefchen starts day two on 15, while Oliver Fulton is yet to get off the mark.
Lancefield was in desperate trouble against Eynesbury, requiring 232 more runs with eight wickets in hand.
Eynesbury scored 242, with Samuel Taylor, Dylan Mallia-Hogan, Seamus Patrick Mahony and Nicholas Grech taking two wickets each.
Neil Johnson starts on five and Mallia-Hogan zero as Lancefield sits 2/11 after 12 overs.
Kilmore is also in need of a big bowling effort, leading by just 84 runs against Diggers Rest Bulla Village.
Riley Callaghan’s 33 allowed Kilmore to make three figures, but it was still bowled out for 116.
Diggers Rest sit 0/32 after the first day’s play.
In Jensen Shield, Wallan was outclassed by Riddell, losing by 212 runs, 110 to 3/322, with Jason Dodd’s 22 the best with the bat for the Magpies.
Romsey was outclassed by Hanging Rock to the tune of five wickets, 158 to 5/159, with Sean Day performing well in scoring 33.
In the Jensen Shield Thirds’ competition, Kilmore took victory over Eynesbury, 3/82 to 81, in a positive finish to its season.
Club grade north saw Kilmore and Wallan also looking for a good finish to end 2025/26 on a good note.
Wallan eventually took victory by two wickets, 8/147 to 8/146.
Kyle McNicholas scored 36 and Michael Jarvie 30 for the Blues, while six Magpies took wickets.
Dave Curran’s unbeaten 53 helped get the Magpies to its target score, despite McNicholas and Timothy Peggie taking two wickets apiece.
Despite finishing second, Broadford will take a loss into its first final, going down to Hanging Rock by seven wickets.
Jason Walsh scored 50 and Aaron Culpin 40 as Broadford made 145, but Hanging Rock chased down the target comfortably to score 3/147 off 31 overs, despite Andrew Pope’s 2/17.
Romsey’s season ended with a six-wicket loss to Gisborne, despite Riley Gray’s 50, losing 8/156 to 4/160.
In a quality, high-scoring game, Eastern Hill won by 81 runs over Lancefield, 9/302 to 9/221.
For the Eagles, Leigh Prior’s 66 and Chris Russell’s 54 was noteworthy, while Kieran McElhinney took 3/27 for the Tigers.
Lancefield was well-served by Hugh Parks’ 60 and Cameron Stein’s 52, while Russell took 4/38 to help keep the Tigers in check for the Eagles.